Age of Rebirth

Chapter 690 The Prelude to the Great War

After a few days, there was no news from Meiling and the others. Tang Qiuli couldn't help being anxious. In front of Mei Ting and Mei Xue, he didn't dare to reveal anything. What he was afraid of was that they were worried. He personally led four special operations teams into the Cang'erhui area, and saw many traces of battles along the way. He has ordered the special operations teams to expand the search area, and there will be news in the near future.

Qiuquan's telegram reassured Tang Qiuli a lot. At least it showed that Meiling and the others were still alive and hadn't been annihilated by the Japanese army. Sometimes, Tang Qiuli was surprised when he thought about it. More than 20 companies were released, and Meiling was alone. Something happened to his company, as if God deliberately made him worry, he forced himself to let go of his worries and devote all his energy to the upcoming battle.

If this battle goes well, the day when the North China issue will be completely resolved will not be far away. The main corps that wiped out Okamura Ningji in Shanxi will have a fundamental change compared with the strength of the Japanese army in North China. He cautiously Commanding all the troops, the seven field brigades newly formed on the bank of the Yellow River based on the Sun Zhenbang Corps are being synthesized, and the required heavy equipment has also arrived in the troops for assembly.

There is no new news in other areas, but Yan Xishan sent a telegram. In addition to thanking Vice Chairman Tang for helping him and taking him in at the most critical moment, there are a lot of thankful words that make people feel nauseous. A small request, allowing him to recruit [-] soldiers in Dingbian to enrich his own guard force and lay the foundation for the recovery of Shanxi. As for the funds needed, I ask Tang Qiuli to donate generously for a temporary loan. After recovering Shanxi, he will definitely repay double . [

After reading Yan Xishan's telegram, Tang Qiuli was a little dumbfounded. This Chief Yan is still dreaming of returning to Shanxi to become the local emperor. He wants to cultivate his own personal power in Dingbian. He has a good idea to recruit troops at his own expense. He also knew the predicament Yan Xishan was facing, and he fled Taiyuan in a hurry. He didn't have time to bring out much of his huge family, and it was already stretched to feed the thousands of remnant soldiers. If he wanted to recruit soldiers, he could only He reached out his hand cheekily.

After carefully weighing the pros and cons, Tang Qiuli generously agreed to do everything according to Yan Xishan's instructions, and the funds were sent to him immediately. Compared with the huge Shanxi, this small amount of money is nothing. Li was not afraid at all that Yan Xishan would make a name for himself in Dingbian. This was a site he had managed for many years. In the hearts and eyes of the people in Dingbian, Tang Qiuli was the only one. Xishan, let him plant the recruiting flag and keep it safe that no one will vote for him. Rebuilding the Jin army is just a dream.

This is an obvious matter, and Tang Qiuli issued a secret order to Shen Jun's investigation office and Gao Chuangshan, director of the Dingbian Secret Service Bureau, to deploy special agents and police forces to closely monitor all actions of Yan Xishan and his subordinates. The situation had to be reported to him, and he was not allowed to act without authorization. It was never a big deal for this Bodhisattva to be placed in Dingbian. Tang Qiuli was already considering finding a good place for Yan Xishan.

The bait that Tang Qiuli put on Ningji Okamura at Yonghe Pass had already shown results. The Japanese army on the opposite side of the Wubao Ferry was secretly transferred to the direction of Yonghe Pass. Although it was carried out secretly at night, they could not escape Tang Qiuli Eyes, the [-] Japanese troops who had arrived at Fenglingdu for a few days, because of Neiji Okamura's strict order, were not allowed to launch an order to cross the river and attack Xi'an.

Not to be outdone, the river defense unit of the Independent Division fired back. In the first few days, because it was a newly formed artillery regiment, it was not a well-trained Japanese artillery opponent in terms of tactics and tactics. They all took a deep breath and reported the matter to Tang Qiuli. He only gave a few words of instructions: "Look for an opportunity to wipe out the Japanese artillery and clear the way for the follow-up battle." Sun Zhenbang thought about it and understood what the commander meant.

Then he began to get busy, mobilizing artillery from several other secondary defensive areas, and secretly transporting the newly equipped large-caliber howitzers in Dingbian to Fenglingdu. Knowing what kind of deal the two of them had made in private, they murmured for a long time, and all the students of the Artillery Department of Dingbian Military Academy formed a full-staffed artillery regiment and went to the Fenglingdu position.

Sun Zhenbang had been busy for two days, and the artillery unit gathered in Fenglingdu had reached as many as six regiments, including a heavy artillery regiment with a range of fifteen kilometers and a caliber of [-] mm. As usual, at [-] o'clock in the morning After a few minutes, the Japanese artillerymen, who were full and uncomfortable, started their routine shelling.

The Artillery of the Independent Division on the other side of the river also immediately launched a counterattack. Unlike in the past, the artillery fire of this time was much more intensive and violent. The Japanese artillery who had the upper hand in the past few days was greatly annoyed, and the Chinese artillery who had been beaten like sheep , How dare you challenge the dignity of the artillery of the Japanese Imperial Army, the Japanese artillery commander gave an order, and all the Japanese artillery units began to carry out devastating shelling.

All kinds of mountain artillery and field artillery were used. The Yellow River Ferry on the other side of Fenglingdu was bombed by the Japanese army's intensive artillery. The artillery in China gradually became mute and lost the right to speak. After fighting for more than half an hour, the Japanese artillery finally stopped complacently.

The gunfire had just stopped, and the permeating gunpowder smoke had not been blown away by the spring breeze. The satisfied Japanese artillerymen leisurely wiped the stinky sweat off their faces. All of a sudden, they became pale. They were all experts. They could judge the caliber of the artillery just from the sound of the cannons. That was how many large-caliber artillery salvos were fired.

"Chinese shelling, evacuate the position!" The Japanese artillery commander shouted hoarsely. The Japanese artillery fired the artillery in a hurry, and a scream that tore the air came from far and near. The cannons fell from the sky and smashed hard on the artillery positions of the Japanese army. The ground shook and the mountains swayed, billowing smoke and dust rose into the sky.

I don't know the result of this artillery battle, but since that day, the Japanese army on the other side never fired a single shot across the river. Just after the artillery battle, Sun Zhenbang hurriedly climbed up the hill, he was eager to see his carefully planned artillery attack As a result, I saw through the telescope that on the Japanese artillery positions covered by artillery fire, there were loess dug out, huge pits, curved gun barrels, scattered gun barrels, and gun wheels scattered here and there. , and trees with lingering smoke, Sun Zhenbang grinned, judging from his experience, the little devil's artillery is finished.

Seeing the report, Tang Qiuli instructed, "Very well, closely monitor the actions of the Japanese army on the opposite bank, and make all preparations for crossing the river attack!" Neji Okamura learned that the troops in the direction of Fenglingdu, and all the artillery, were tricked by the Chinese. It was ruined, and I was so angry that I cursed the Japanese commander in the telegram. I had no choice but to go from the troops in the direction of Wubao.The artillery of the two regiments was transferred to the direction of Fenglingdu, although the artillery in his hand was not very abundant.

The Artillery of the Independent Division, who had taken advantage of it, really hoped to have another fun, but the artillery of the little devil became more honest than the rabbit. No matter how he shouted, he just didn't show his face, so he had to give up in resentment. The Japanese artillery was honest, and the infantry was not idle. Leaving most of the troops, they confronted the independent division across the river at Fenglingdu, waiting for an opportunity to cross the river and attack Xi'an.

The rest of the troops began to invade and occupy Ruicheng, Yongji, and Yuncheng in southern Shanxi, and expanded the occupied area. The Japanese army wantonly burned, killed, raped and looted. I mean, the people in this area have suffered. Across the Yellow River, the soldiers saw the fireworks everywhere in the south of Shanxi, and knew that the little devil was harming the people again.

Meiling, who was seriously injured, didn't know what was happening now, and he didn't have the necessary medical conditions. His injury didn't improve, so he could only lie on a stretcher and be carried by someone to march. According to the suggestions of his comrades, he immediately went to the bank of the Yellow River Meiling's injuries could not be delayed any longer. After marching in the mountains for several days, they did not encounter Japanese troops or other troops. Only then did everyone know that they were too far away from the main force. Far, basically out of the original combat area.

In the evening, the troops camped in a valley. In Luliang Mountain in May, although the daytime is full of spring, at night, the chilly mountain wind blows people's heart. Fortunately, we found a cave to barely escape the cold mountain. The wind, the soldiers rested around several campfires, everyone was frowning, worried about Mei Ling's injury, Mei Ling woke up from a coma, and heard the "cracking" sound of the campfire burning in his ears, and he felt dry mouth His tongue was dry and his body was burning badly, so he couldn't help but let out a low moan.

The voice was soft and did not disturb other comrades in arms. Mei Ling looked at the entrance of the cave. In the deep night sky, there were dots of stars blinking indifferently. , there are Japanese troops everywhere, several major ferry crossings, and even the key areas for Japanese troops to deploy. These comrades-in-arms bring themselves, and the possibility of crossing the river is extremely small. Up to now, Meiling's heart is full of nostalgia for life and fear of death. .

Thinking of this, Mei Ling burst into tears. After all, he is a big boy, so there is no need to be harsh. He has experienced the test of war for the first time in his life. Hovering in my heart, I am more aware of the preciousness of life. [

Mei Ling, whose thoughts were disturbed, suddenly heard a burst of dense but extremely slight footsteps. He turned his head in the direction of the sound, his heart tightened, his hair stood on end, and under the dim starlight, groups of Japanese soldiers appeared in the On the surrounding hillsides, before he had time to shout, he struggled to pick up the submachine gun that was always by his side, and pulled the trigger. The sound of the gun broke the tranquility of the night, and a sudden encounter began.

(To be continued)